Obsession
by shaman3
Summary: [COMPLETE] Jack has been keeping a secret from everyone. The only one besides Wuya that has figured out something's going on with Jack, is Raimundo. And a LOT is going on with Jack. RaiJack
1. Chapter 1

Jack Spicer stalked out of the forest, turning in for the day. He took out the Reversing Mirror and looked at his gloomy reflection. He lifted a pale finger to his face and slid it down his cheek, trying to pick up any face make-up. And, just as expected, none came off. The pale face was permanent. He was born like this, a pale goth boy. The black circles around his eyes weren't permanent, though. That was definitely make-up. Jack started to wipe off his eye make-up, when Wuya came floating along.

"What's wrong, Jack?" She whispered in her misty voice.

"Huh?" Jack continued to smear off his make-up.

"You haven't been yourself lately. You are hiding something from everyone else. It's only when you are alone that the real you comes out."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Jack had successfully taken off his eye make-up, and started to change out of his black robe. He always changed after a Showdown with the Xiaolin Warriors. "Look, why don't you go bother Chase, or something? I heard he's got a new hot outfit."

"Ooh, don't mind if I do." The witch floated away to Chase young, who only happened to be a short distance away. He came, as usual, to inspect how Omi was doing. The evil boy genius was glad he was finally alone to change into his ordinary white T-shirt, and blue pants. He looked back at the mirror and smiled, noticing how different he looked when he was in front of others, than when he was alone by himself.

The thing was, Wuya was right. He was hiding something. Not just from Wuya, from everyone. Every single person that he was around. Even the Xiaolin Losers. And the sad thing was, no one had noticed except Wuya.

"Hey, Jack. What's up?" Jack jumped in surprise and turned to see the Dragon of the Wind in front of him, blinking in confusion. He had already changed into his orange t-shirt and green pants, his usual look after a Showdown.

Jack panicked and put up a fake smile. "Nothing! What're you doing here, anyway?"

Raimundo shrugged. "I managed to wander off for a sec without anyone noticing." Then he quirked an eyebrow. "You sure you're okay? You haven't been yourself lately. I mean, no one else can see it, but I can see right through your façade. It's a mask, isn't it? You're hiding behind a mask of—"

"Raimundo, hurry up! I want to get home as soon as possible!" Kimiko's voice echoed down from where she and the others were already on Dojo. Jack was secretly relieved that Kimiko had interrupted Raimundo's little concern speech.

Raimundo turned to the forest with a small frown, but then looked back at Jack. Jack saw the worry in his green eyes. "You'll be okay. Don't worry, Jack."

Jack smiled and nodded, even though he knew all too well that he wouldn't be okay. But Raimundo seemed satisfied with the answer. He nodded and starting running towards the forest. "I'll see you later, 'kay?"

"'Kay!" The goth boy called back, and after one last peek at the mirror, he himself got ready to go home.

While he was cruising home in his new Evil Hyper Jet, he went over what the brown-haired dragon had told him. He was going to checkup on Jack. He was going to try to get another chance to speak with him. Alone. Jack sighed. _All right, let's start thinking now... what can I tell Raimundo when he asks why I haven't been acting normal lately..._

Well, he could say that he was just stressed about all the work. It _would_ make sense, since he _has_ been making tons of robots lately, repairing them from all the times those stupid Xiaolin losers destroyed them. And there _have_ been many new Shen Gong Wu revealing themselves lately. Wuya wouldn't sit still for more than two minutes before another Shen Gong Wu would reveal itself.

So he could say that. Or he could say that his cousin's been annoying him lately, which was true. She had been over a lot more than before. Jack's parents had somehow taken a liking to Megan's parents, and invited them over more than twice a month. Little Megan had broken more than half of his robots every time she came over, giving him more robots to fix.

Or he could just tell him the truth. Tell him why he wasn't feeling as well as he was two months ago. Tell him why he had taken up using a mask to cover his problems, to cover his problems of confusion and worry...

...and love.

Yes, love. He was in-love. Jack Spicer, Evil Boy Genius, the smallest evil villain in the history of villains... was in-love. Not with a bad guy, with a good guy. Yes, a _guy_. Meaning, male, boy, man, whatever. He didn't think it was right, to be fond of someone of the same gender. To be fond of a boy with spiked-up brown hair and beautiful green eyes. To be fond of someone that spent every day training to fight against evil.

To be fond of Raimundo.

Jack hated it. He hated the fact that he now had someone that he cared about, so much that it might affect his taunting, gloating, or laughing skills, or his goal to rule the world. He hated the fact that he now couldn't go against the Xiaolin Warriors with the same amount of force as he used to have. He hated the fact that someone like Wuya could love Chase, Chase Young of the _opposite gender_. He hated that he actually allowed himself to love someone.

Still, he didn't hate Raimundo.

He could never hate him. Ever since he figured out the meaning of the new feeling that conquered his body, he cared more about the Wind Dragon than he ever cared for someone before. Some might say he was vulnerable now, that he could never beat the forces of good as long as he loved someone on the other side. But he didn't care. This was love. Love was the strongest force on the planet. Love blocked out all other reasons to live. Love was enough.

Love was always enough.

---------------------------

Raimundo watched silently as Omi practiced his Leopard Strike in the temple garden. He was extremely bored. Kimiko was currently using her Gameboy for Pochika Raider. Clay was sleeping, like he always did right after a Showdown. Dojo was no where to be found. And Omi was out here training.

He did have to admit, though, watching Omi practice somehow left his mind clear of all thoughts. It made him not worry about anything that was going on, sports, chores, Shen Gong Wu. He could watch Omi all day and it wouldn't bother him. He never got that buzzing in his mind like he did when he was just sitting there, doing nothing. Instead, he let in all the sounds in the air, the leaves scratching against the paved road, the bird chirping, the footsteps of someone walking into the temple.

Raimundo closed his eyes, letting in all the natural sounds, when there was a small disturbance in the air. Instead of hearing birds and leaves, he heard a midi file song to the tune of Kimiko's cell phone. He cracked one eye open to see the Gameboy in the hands of a Japanese girl.

"Kimiko," Raimundo acknowledged, turning his attention back at Omi.

"What's up, Rai?" Kimiko said perkily, pausing the game and looking up at her friend.

"Nothing." Raimundo muttered, using Jack's previous excuse. He watched Omi leap high into the air and perform a series of kicks and punches all the way down. This technique was called the Lion Combo; Raimundo had been watching Omi for so long that he actually memorized all his techniques. He nodded at Kimiko's hand-held game. "You done with that?"

Kimiko looked down at her hands, staring at the screen. It was a moment or two before she resumed the game and pressed a few buttons. Raimundo thought that, by her actions, she meant to say 'no', but then the game was shoved into his face. "Here, I saved."

"Thanks," Raimundo replied, taking her game and immediately popping Goozomies Three into it, flipping the On switch and letting himself get sucked into the video game. Kimiko stared at his face, screwed in concentration for the game, and took in all the details. His tanned skin brought out his dark green eyes, giving him a little mischievous look. His spiked up brown hair was the same color as his bushy eyebrows. His tongue came out to the side, still into his game and taking no notice to Kimiko's staring. Kimiko sighed dreamily and looked off to the distance.

He was so perfect...

"What." Raimundo stated more than asked, pausing the game and glaring at Kimiko. He had seen her blue eyes observing every curve in his body, and he had heard that sigh of, what he thought was, disappointment.

Kimiko immediately snapped her head up at him, and smiled. "Oh, nothing. Nothing at all."

Raimundo grunted and went back to his game. He usually wouldn't act like this around Kimiko, as he loved her so much, but today was just a bad day. He had nothing to do nowadays than to play games, train, sleep, or eat.

Although no one else had noticed it, Raimundo could tell Jack was hiding something. Either that, or he was just uncomfortable about something, or he had personal problems. He couldn't figure it out. Jack was so good at hiding things. Or maybe it was just that nobody cared about the Evil Boy Genius besides him. Raimundo considered Jack as a friend. He didn't care that the boy was constantly making new robots to face the good side, or that Raimundo was always fighting against him. Jack was just a boy that liked to play basketball like every other boy (even though Raimundo preferred soccer). He had some side effects, like conquering the world and the hobby of making robots, but other than that, Jack was perfectly normal.

When Kimiko had finally walked away, Raimundo decided that tonight, he would visit Jack to see what was wrong.

--------------------

Raimundo slipped on the Golden Tiger claws and prepared to leave for Jack's house. He glanced down at Kimiko's sleeping figure, her hair out and her lips slightly apart, and smiled softly. He leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the cheek before slashing the air. And with one last look at his love, he jumped into the vortex for Jack's mansion.

He landed on Jack's bedroom window, which happened to be open. He peeked in to see Jack sleeping on a four-poster bed, curled up and breathing slowly. He jumped in the room and made it quickly and quietly to Jack's bed. He was glad that there were no security bots on patrol in Jack's room, or he might have not got in so easily. He kneeled down beside Jack's bed and observed his face. He looked so peaceful, not a smirk or a glare on his face. Just plain blank. Raimundo thought he looked _so_ much better like this...

The Dragon of the Wind shook his head vigorously. When did he start having thoughts like that?

He stared at Jack hard. Maybe if he went into his dreams, he would get more answers out of him than Raimundo would be able to if Jack was awake. But was that right, to trespass into someone's dream? Was it right to know more about someone by spying on them? Was it right to know things about them that they didn't want you to know? Didn't want _anyone_ to know? Yes, Jack wasn't just keeping a secret from him; he was keeping a secret from everyone.

But what was it that the boy genius didn't want others to know? What could get to such a small boy like Jack? It suddenly occurred to Raimundo that he didn't know anything about the boy. Like, what food did he like? What did he do in his spare time (other than building robots, of course)? What type of girls did he go for? And more importantly, how did his mind work? How could such a dope like Jack have a complex enough brain to build his own army of robots? If he was smart enough to mend gears, shouldn't he be less of a sissy? Just what happened to his goddarn brain?

Then again, maybe that was just how evil geniuses were.

The red-haired boy smiled softly and buried his face deeper in the pillow. Raimundo gasped at how relaxed he looked when he was sleeping. He just looked like any other boy. Moonlight crept in from the bedroom window, bringing out all of the curves in Jack's face. His cheekbones weren't sharp at all, and they curved in the perfect way. _Upon the perfect face._ His skin was so pale, and the moonlight only made it paler. His closed eyes would be that dazzling ruby if he were awake. And his lips were so thin and they looked so soft, almost _begging_ to be kissed...

Raimundo widened his eyes and shook his head quickly to get shake the thoughts out of his head. Maybe he had been spending too much time with Kimiko.

Making up his mind, he stood up and turned around to go back to the temple. He slashed the air with the Golden Tiger Claws and jumped inside, a smirk on his tanned face.

He had a plan.

The next time Raimundo came back to Jack's room, he had two more Shen Gong Wu with him; the Shroud of Shadows and the Shadow of Fear. He was ready to enter Jack's dream, and he wasn't about to get spotted. He was going to hide under the Shroud of Shadows and spy on Jack Spicer. Raimundo still felt a tad guilty about spying on the boy, but his desires to know more about the kid were far greater.

Placing the hawk statue in the palm of his hand, Raimundo whispered to the gadget. "Shadow of Fear!"

And Raimundo, without warning, vanished into thin air.

The next time he appeared was in the forest. It appeared to be right after a Showdown, because Jack did what he always did: took out the Reversing Mirror and look at his reflection. Raimundo was suddenly aware that he was in eye's view, and quickly hid under the Shroud of Shadows, whispering its name. He watched cautiously as Jack started to take off his eye make-up, slowly and silently. He noticed that Jack had a look of sorrow on his face. Sorrow and maybe a hint of longing. He wondered why that was.

Suddenly somebody appeared in the bushes, looking around for something. Then, finding Jack, it smirked and emerged from the shadows. Raimundo gasped at what he saw. The figure was a boy with brown spiky hair, still wearing his green and white shirt from the Showdown that happened earlier. It was him. Raimundo wondered what he was doing in Jack's dream. Maybe it was one of those dreams that had random people in it. Yeah, that had to be it. Why else would Jack Spicer have the Dragon of the Wind in his dream?

"Hey, Jack. What's up?" Dream Raimundo said, and Raimundo felt a weak sense of Déjà vu engulf him. Wasn't this almost exactly what happened earlier?

Jack turned around, hiding the mirror behind his back like he did before. "R-Raimundo! You scared me."

Now that wasn't what happened before.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." Dream Raimundo stepped a bit closer to Jack, a small mischievous glint in his eyes. "How are you, Jack?"

That _definitely_ wasn't what happened before!

Both Jack and Raimundo shivered. Raimundo thought that his dream copy was acting a bit strange. Sure, he was a strange guy, being friends with a small boy that had a big yellow head and collecting mystical objects that had special powers, but heck, he wasn't _that_ strange! He was acting so creepy, he thought he was gonna shriek and run out of that place.

Jack looked at Dream Raimundo hesitantly. "I'm fine, thanks. How about you?" Dream Raimundo had gotten a lot closer than before. He was now only a foot's distance from Jack's now eye-make-up less face. Dream Raimundo cupped Jack's pale cheek and started closing the space between them. Jack continued to talk rapidly. "You know, maybe it's not a good idea to be here right now. Someone might be watching."

At those last words, Dream Raimundo froze from only a millimeter away from Jack's pale lips. Dream Raimundo's lips mingled there for a second before moving away. "You're right."

Raimundo, whose eyes had been nearly popping out of his head for the last couple seconds, finally remembered how to breathe when he saw himself a more appropriate distance away from Jack. _This_ was what he was doing in Jack's dream? This wasn't one of those dreams where random people pop up! This was... he didn't even know what kind of dream this was! He didn't even know if he _wanted_ to know!

Jack apparently learned how to breathe again, as well. He inhaled slowly and let out a big sigh. Dream Raimundo, on the other hand, was smirking as he watched the other boy shiver. "I'll see you around, Jack." He got two fingers and saluted the boy genius before heading back into the forest.

Jack nodded and turned around. "See you."

-------------------------

There was a gigantic flash of light, and Raimundo couldn't see anything. Then, the light was gone just like that, it made Raimundo wonder if it was just his imagination. He looked in front of him, still hiding under his magical cloak, and saw Jack walk into his basement. The red-haired boy took off his goggles and tossed them aside. Then he walked over to the table in the center of the room and collapsed on it. Jack's head banged against the hard surface with a loud thud. Jack muttered something into the metal that contained the words, 'stupid' and 'Raimundo.'

Not long after Jack's appearance, did the star of the dream come in. He leaned over Jack's slouched body and got close to Jack's neck. Jack froze when he felt Dream Raimundo's breath on the back of his neck, but didn't bother to move out of the way. Dream Raimundo smirked at this and slowly ran his tongue against the pale skin. Jack gasped but then moaned softly. Dream Raimundo smirked even wider (if that was even possible) and put two hands on Jack's hips, tilting his face at an angle to nap the side of his neck. Jack moaned some more, closing his eyes in a delightful bliss.

"I didn't know that by 'see you around,' you actually meant—gasp—that you'd come to my house." Jack squeaked before another long moan emitted from his parted lips.

"Well, what'd you expect, Jack? That I'd just sit around and think about you?" Dream Raimundo drawled before flipping the boy over so that he was facing him. Dream Raimundo smiled devilishly, staring at Jack hungrily.

Jack stared back, but his gaze was so glazed that Raimundo couldn't read him at all. "You think about me?"

"Of course I do, Jack. Every night, and every day. I'm thinking about you constantly. You invade my mind and my dreams." Dream Raimundo lowered his face and started to kiss the red-haired boy slowly. Jack started to kiss back when Dream Raimundo's left hand crept up from his hip to the back of his head, pulling on Jack's red locks.

As Raimundo watched himself and Jack kiss, he realized what kind of dream this was. It was a wet dream. Yes, Jack was having wet dreams with him in it. And that meant that he had feelings for the Dragon-in-training. Jack was in-love with him. Was that why Jack was acting so strangely? Because he had developed new feelings? Because he now had someone he cared about? And that the person he loved was on the good side? Why did Jack have feelings for him, anyway? Wasn't he continuously fighting against him? Why?

Suddenly there was huge flash of light that made Raimundo raise his arm up to cover his face. He waited for the light to fade, and when it did, Raimundo found himself in the most beautiful place he had ever seen.

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He was in a meadow.

It was a beautiful meadow, with a huge blanket of flowers on the ground below. The earth's surface was so perfectly even. Everything else was white, the same color as the flash just before. Except it was a softer shade, so that it didn't hurt your eyes too much when you looked at it. The only other objects in the meadow were two figures. Two boys, the same height, the same age, yet completely different.

Jack was staring at Dream Raimundo's back, an expression of so much pain on his face that Raimundo had to swallow his gasp. Dream Raimundo was looking away from him, pain also etched onto his face, but a bit more sorrow. Raimundo didn't think it was right to have such hurt boys in a place as beautiful as this.

"I'm sorry, Jack. I have to go." Dream Raimundo murmured softly, obvious pain in his words.

Jack let out a small sigh. He reached his arm out, as if trying to touch the other boy. "Don't go. Please don't go."

Suddenly a loud moan echoed through the air. "No..." Raimundo looked around to try and see where it came from, but couldn't find anyone else but him, Dream Raimundo, and Jack. Jack and Dream Raimundo didn't seem to notice it, so Raimundo just went back to watching the show.

Dream Raimundo looked to the side slightly. "I have to. It's the only way."

"The only way to what? To really protect the world from evil? Raimundo, I would never attack you in my quest for world domination. Is it the only way to protect my dream? This is love, Raimundo. I can give up my dream for you. I can give up anything for you. Do you hear me, Rai? This is _love._ Love is enough. As long as I have you, I don't need anything else."

"That's not true!" Dream Raimundo whipped around to face Jack. He had tears in his eyes, but he looked so frustrated. "Why are you being so difficult? You've had that dream since you were a little boy, Jack. I can't get in the way of that."

"It's just a childhood dream! Nothing's as important as you!" Jack said loudly, trying desperately to persuade Raimundo to come back with him.

Dream Raimundo stood still for a second before turning around again, closing his eyes tightly. "Jack, this is for your own good. I can't keep fighting for good if I love someone on the other side. What we have, Jack, is never going to work. I can never be a bad guy; you can never be a good guy. I love you, but it's as if I'm not _allowed_ to love you."

Jack's lips turned into a thin line. He walked over to Dream Raimundo and gave a fierce hug. Dream Raimundo seemed shocked at first, but then relaxed, the expression on his face telling Raimundo that he enjoyed the contact, but didn't want to. "You say you love me. Why can't you do this for me? I've never asked for anything from you. Now I'm asking you to stay with me. Please."

"What good will it do? Me being there won't change anything."

"Yes, but you not being there is even worse! I need you, Raimundo. I need you to survive. Without you, I'm nothing. I'm just an empty shell. Before these feelings for you started developing, all I ever thought about was world conquest. But now, all my thoughts are about you."

"You see? I'm already interrupting your dream!" Dream Raimundo somehow got out of Jack's grip and turned to face him, a fair distance apart. "I can't stay any longer, or you'll completely lose it!"

"It's just a dream, Raimundo." Jack said, speaking loudly and clearly. "It's highly impossible. I used to want it so much, but... but now I want you more."

Dream Raimundo shut his eyes and looked away, gritting his teeth. "Don't say that, Jack. Your own dreams are more important than me."

"Please, Raimundo. Stay with me." Jack continued, ignoring Dream Raimundo's words. "I need you. I can't live without you. I lo-love you."

It was the 'I love you' that made Dream Raimundo break down. Tears escaped from his closed eyelids, trailing slowly down his tanned cheek. His breaths came out shallow and shaky as another glistening liquid crystal fell from the boy's eyes. He pursed his lips together and hastily wiped away the falling tear in an effort to stop crying, but the tears just kept falling. Jack seemed slightly pained to see his beloved cry, but Raimundo could see that he was still trying to convince him to stay.

"Raimundo... all I have left is you, everyone else's left me! Wuya's just using me... Chase is independent—he's always been independent... I haven't talked to Tubbimura and all them for a long time, going on three months, now... Please, Raimundo... you mean the world to me... just having you there brings me happiness... You don't even have to be doing anything, just stand there and I'll feel whole. When you're not here, I feel lost and confused... I don't know how I can survive without you..."

"Jack, you're not being fair. You can't count on a person like that; it's just not right." Dream Raimundo gasped, wiping his last tears away and finally looking back at Jack with those beautiful green eyes that haunted all of Jack's dreams. "You have to be strong, Jack. You have to learn how to live without me... I know it'll be hard, but you'll get used to it... You're a strong boy, Jack. You can do this."

"I don't know if I can." Jack whispered, looking down at the flowers at his feet. Raimundo was shocked to see that pale face contain so much pain, so much hurt and desperation. "You were always with me, always comforting me and telling me it was all right. _Telling me everything was all right. _Whenever you were gone, I would never smile. I would just think about you, wanting to be in your arms again. And I'd feel so empty and incomplete... If you leave me like that, I... I don't... I won't be able to live!"

"You have to, Jack!" Jack gasped when he felt Dream Raimundo weave his fingers into Jack's red hair and pull the red-haired boy towards him, resting his lips against Jack's ear. Raimundo felt a strange feeling, as if he wanted to see himself kiss Jack's scalp instead of his ear, as if he wanted to see Jack's face pressed into his chest, as if he knew the story would've been more perfect that way.

But alas, the story was not perfect at all.

"You have to live on without me... I know you can do it... I believe in you, Jack..." Dream Raimundo whispered harshly.

"Why're you doing this? Why can't you just stay with me? Then we can be happy. Together." Jack whispered back, hugging him tighter.

"I have to, Jack. I'm sorry." Then Dream Raimundo pulled Jack to eye level with him, holding his face with both hands, and looked straight into Jack's desperate red eyes. "I'm so sorry. I don't want to do this. You know that, don't you, Jack?"

"Yes," Jack whispered, eyes beginning to fill up with tears. Dream Raimundo saw this and kissed the tears away. Then he kissed Jack on the lips, kissing him as if it were the last thing he did. Jack kissed him back with just as much vigor, trying to stretch out the moment as long as possible. The kiss seemed to be the longest kiss they had ever shared, yet it ended all too soon. When Dream Raimundo finally pulled away, he let out a short breath and pressed his forehead against Jack's, hands clutching to the sides of Jack's head possessively.

"I love you, Jack. I always will." Dream Raimundo whispered, tears of his own beginning to fall.

"I love you too, Raimundo. _Forever_." Jack whispered, tears falling endlessly.

Dream Raimundo hesitated before giving Jack another fierce hug. He let go almost as soon as he latched on, and then, with a final loving look, he turned around and started walking away. Jack just gazed upon his lover's back, as if expecting him to turn around and run towards him, telling him that he couldn't leave without him. When he saw Dream Raimundo keep walking away, never looking back, he called out his name. But it didn't do anything. The brown haired boy just kept on walking...

"Raimundo!" Jack called again, fat tears falling from such ruby eyes. Raimundo's vision began to get watery, and he had to bite down his lip to stop form crying. It was just so sad. To see Jack calling out his name in such longing, and seeing himself just walking away... it was just too much for him. He wouldn't cry in one of the sad movies that Kimiko would shove him onto the couch to watch, but the fact that this was all happening in Jack's mind, and that it was _him_ being the one to make Jack's face look so pained like that made it more depressing.

Jack clenched his fists and his whole body started trembling. "RAIMUNDO!"

Raimundo himself was about to break down and cry openly, when suddenly there was a great flash of light, brighter than the previous ones. Raimundo felt like he was being squeezed through a small tunnel, everything pressing down on him like a stamp. His teeth sank through his lip, letting blood slowly escape, in an effort to shut himself up from pain. Raimundo wanted everything to just stop. Wanted all the pain, the squeezing, the light, to stop.

And it did.

All too soon, the light faded, and the brunette found himself back in Jack's bedroom.

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Jack was fidgeting on his bed, arms thrashing wildly about as he moaned openly, "No, don't go... Please come back... Raimundo... oh, Raimundo..."

Raimundo was frightened. He had figured out what that moan was in the last part of the dream. It was Jack's moan. It was as if he knew what was going to happen.

Before he could think, Raimundo set down the magical cloak and the hawk statue, shaking Jack furiously. "Jack, wake up. It's me."

Jack's eyes snapped open and they immediately rested upon Raimundo's green orbs. His widened eyes looked at him as if he had no idea what he was doing there. Jack swallowed hard, trying to breathe steadily again. "What... what happened? Why're you here?"

Raimundo blinked. He let his arms rest by his side and started to scratch the back of his head. "Uh..." What could he tell him? That he had come to raid his Shen Gong Wu? That he was dragged here by Kimiko, who actually had a heart for him? That he was going to attack him in his sleep?

Or should he just tell him the truth? Should he tell him that he was just worried about his strange behavior lately, and wanted to know what was going on? Should he tell him that he went inside his dream to know _exactly_ how the red-haired boy worked? Should he tell him that he saw everything? That he knew... knew about his secret that could have been kept for so long...?

Jack's ruby eyes landed on the hawk statue laid upon his bedroom floor, and Jack immediately sat up, looking scared to death. His eyes swiveled to Raimundo. "Did you...?"

"No, of course I—well, yeah... I guess. I wasn't trying to spy on you, or anything!" Raimundo added, noticing Jack's suspicious look. "Look, I've noticed how strange you've been acting lately. I wanted to check on you, but I couldn't do it in the day time, or else somebody might suspect and start a search for me. I couldn't've done that, so I escaped at night, when everyone else was asleep. I thought I'd get a bit more information out of you if I went in your dreams..." Raimundo trailed off embarrassedly.

Jack leaned in a bit closer, eyes widening in fear. "Did you see... everything?"

"No, I couldn't've—er, yeah... Yeah, I did." Raimundo stared guiltily at the floor, just knowing that Jack was hating him more by the second. He just knew that the red-haired boy was wearing that scowl, glaring at him in that unforgiving way. He knew that the boy genius was disgusted with him in every way for spying him in his dream, but when Raimundo finally turned to him, he saw that the boy was staring down at his blankets a small frown gracing his pale features, looking as sad as ever.

And in many ways, that was worse.

"I've had that dream... for a long time now..." Jack whispered, swallowing after. "And it's always the same... You always leave right after kissing me like that... against my desk in my basement, you know?... And every time, I can't do anything about you... leaving... You always leave me with that terrible whole in my heart..." Here, Jack hiccupped and started sobbing, moaning loudly.

Raimundo had seen enough crying in the last fifteen minutes that it was no longer unusual to see Jack cry. What _was_ unusual, though, was that confession he had made. It touched Raimundo and made him guilty for making that innocent boy cry like that. But he didn't know what to do to make him feel any better. All he could do was stare at Jack, frowning slightly, with that dull ache in his chest.

Finally deciding what to do, the Brazilian stood up and made to leave. He picked up his three Shen Gong Wu and was almost about to Golden-Tiger-Claws himself back to the temple, when he heard Jack wail behind him and froze.

"R-Raimundo?" Jack whimpered. He had been crying into his ruby, thin blanket (that brought out the color of his beautiful eyes, Raimundo added silently) and now he withdrew his face to look at Raimundo. Raimundo turned and almost gasped out loud when he saw those red eyes shining with tears... those red eyes that held so much pain and sorrow, it almost made his heart break... "Don't go... please don't go..."

It was as if the red-haired youth was speaking through a memory. Didn't he just hear those words, coming from the Jack in the dream? Was his dream about to turn to reality? Was Jack about to confess his undying love to Raimundo, even though he already knew about it?

Was this all really _real?_

"I'm... sorry, Jack... I have to go." Raimundo said, repeating himself from the duplicate of Jack's dream.

Jack let out a wail that made Raimundo flinch. And he started to cry all over again, pleading all the while for Raimundo to stop his torments. "Raimundo, don't do this to me! You can't... you can't bring my dream to reality... It's just not right! It's unfair! I... I've already been though that about fourteen times... Ever since I began to love you, it's always been that dream... I've never had a dream without you... Don't do this..."

Raimundo turned back to Jack, a look of alarm on his face. "No, Jack, that wasn't what I meant! I'm not gonna leave you forever, just for now. I've gotta get back to the Xiaolin Temple, or someone might suspect something!"

"Are you... regretting you ever came to see me?" Jack said, barely over a whisper.

"Jack, it's nothing like that! I've just gotta get back in time, that's all!"

"Can't you stay...? Just this once? I've never been able to talk to you for so long, or have you even there, standing before me for so long... Please, just this once..."

Raimundo hurried over to Jack's bed once again and collapsed to his knees. He cupped Jack's cheek, not taking notice to what he was doing, not taking notice to how he was making Jack feel by touching him. "Oh, Jack..."

Jack panted for a few seconds, looking back at Raimundo, not knowing what to do. Then, apparently not being able to stop himself, he tangled his own fingers with Raimundo's and held his hand closer to his cheek, holding it as if it were a precious treasure. He looked happy just for that moment when he held Raimundo's hand close. And he cried all over again, though this time it was from happiness. Raimundo guessed that he was happy he finally was able to touch his love... to hold him close...as if never letting go...

"Raimundo," Raimundo was now so used to hearing his name from Jack's mouth that it did not make him feel uncomfortable or alien in any sort of way anymore. "I don't know if this is too much to ask... but can you hold me...? Just before you go?"

Raimundo panicked. He didn't know what to do. He didn't exactly have any problem with holding Jack... but then why was he having such difficulty in agreeing? Was it because he knew he didn't love Jack back? Was it because it would be a fake kind-of love? Why?

But Raimundo agreed. Sliding his hand off Jack's cheek, he rested both hands upon Jack's waist and leaned in close, practically on top of him and the bed now. He buried his nose into Jack's shoulder, feeling Jack shiver from the sudden warmth and maybe from excitement. Raimundo knew it was wrong to do this, to bring Jack's hopes up when he didn't love him. He knew it was an immoral thing to do, yet he didn't want to see jack hurt again. He never wanted to see the pain in Jack's beautiful ruby eyes again, like when the boy genius had discovered Raimundo knew about his secret.

"Raimundo," Jack said again, his voice a bit higher. "C-could you out your hand on my right hip...? It's what you do in my dream..."

Even Raimundo knew that that was going too far. He knew he shouldn't do it, for holding Jack was good enough, yet he still did. He slid his right hand down from the waist to the hip, making Jack gasp. The brown-haired boy was so comfortable like this, holding Jack in his bed. He knew it wasn't real love, but it didn't hurt to pretend once in a while, did it?

"Raimundo..." Jack groaned from such intense pleasure, even though all Raimundo was doing was holding his hip. "I know this is too much... and I know this is all really uncomfortable... but please... please kiss me..."

"What?" Raimundo blurted, taking his face out of Jack's revealed shoulder. He looked at Jack, bewildered.

"It doesn't have to be on the lips or anything, just... on the cheek or something... you know?" Jack looked away embarrassedly or disappointedly, Raimundo didn't know.

But he agreed. One hand still on the boy's hip, Raimundo leaned in to kiss Jack on the pale cheek. He stayed there for about three seconds before he pulled away, one red-haired evil boy genius looking rather disappointed. Raimundo stood up, taking his hand off Jack's hip, and stared down at him. They stared at each other for a good five minutes before Jack broke a smile. "You should probably go. Before the others start to suspect something."

Raimundo didn't sense the feeling of hurt and longing in the boys words and merely smiled back. "Yeah. You be good now."

And then, with a mutter of a mystical object's name, he teleported back to his home with just a slash of the air and a step into a vortex. And he left Jack all alone, suddenly feeling very lonely and empty after what Raimundo had just did. But after a couple of minutes, going back to those moments where the dragon of the wind had actually wrapped his arms around him, actually _kissed_ him, he slid back down and rested his head back on his pillow and wrapped the blanket over him, falling into an immediate deep sleep, even though the sun was already beginning to climb into the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

"Jack Spicer, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown!"

It was the first time they had spoken in two weeks, if you didn't count all the gloating and insulting. It was usually Omi who challenged him, since he was the fastest Dragon to reach the Shen Gong Wu. But this time it was different. It was Raimundo.

In truth, Jack had missed Raimundo talking to him, hugging him, and kissing him, but maybe that was just for that night... that special night that had to be Jack's favorite night ever...

Jack narrowed his eyes at the green-eyed boy. "Name it." Showing that he loved the boy, in front of everyone else, was something the red-haired genius did _not_ want to do. So he decided to put on a little mask while he was at it.

Raimundo, surprisingly caught on, but decided to play along and stood up confidently, still clutching one of the two handles of the cup, the new Shen Gong Wu. "My Falcon's Eye for your Gils of Himatchi. First one to find this Shen Gong Wu wins."

"Easy enough. Let's go! Xiaolin Showdown!" Jack and Raimundo bellowed.

In a blinding flash of light and sudden change of scenery, the two boys, one with fancy ninja armor, were standing on rocks, completely surrounded by water. They stood, glaring at each other, even though both new it was just a cover-up. Just after shouting the words to start the Showdown, Jack activated the Gils of Himatchi and dove underwater, searching frantically for the hiding Shen Gong Wu. Raimundo shouted his Shen Gong Wu's name and scoped underwater, seeking the mystical object as well. His eyes scanned over a pile of rocks, a mound of seaweed, and landed on a certain red-haired, finned, evil boy genius. His heart gave a jolt, and he lowered his Falcon's eye to his side, still looking at the place where Jack was, frowning slightly. He couldn't do it. He just couldn't face Jack anymore. He couldn't fight him anymore. It just felt too uncomfortable. Too _weird._

"You can do it, Rai!" The Dragon of the Wind turned to see Kimiko over on the sidelines, cheering the loudest among his friends. Yes, he still loved Kimiko. He loved her with all his heart. He sometimes even when out to places with her; amusement parks, movie theaters, soccer games. But then why was it that he felt so uncomfortable fighting Jack Spicer? Was it because he knew that Jack loved him? Was it because he knew of the dreams Jack had? Shouldn't he face Jack like an enemy and take him down? What kept him from attacking?

Looking through the Falcon's Eye again, he jumped in surprise when he saw that Jack was a mere two meters away from retrieving the Shen Gong Wu. As quick as possible, Raimundo leaped in the air and focused his element on the water below, concentrating on the spot where the Shen Gong Wu was. A gust of wind came out of no where and started spinning in mid-air. The small tornado descended upon the water, driving the water away and revealing the piece of land where the wanted object lay.

And suddenly, Raimundo rocketed downward, hands by his side, eyes straight forward. The wind rushed passed his ears as he targeted for the said object. Jack immediately pulled off the Gils of Himatchi and dove for the Shen Gong Wu. Raimundo yelled and tried to control the wind to move against the force of gravity, but it was too much for him. As much as he hated to admit it, he was the least experienced Dragon out of the four. And now it was all over. He wasn't going to be able to control the wind, and he was going to smack into the earth's surface and die losing to the evil boy genius, Jack Spicer...

Suddenly, he was in a heap, arms out lying on his torso exhaustedly, legs tangled, on some soft surface. He didn't know what was going on. Raimundo peered up and saw Jack's pale, surprised face. It was then that he realized he was in the boy's arms. He had caught the Brazilian boy before he fell to the ground. With a split second to decide, he flung his arms around the boy's neck and dug his nose into his shoulder. He heard Jack gasp but didn't make a move to back away or get out of his arms.

"Thank you..." Raimundo whispered. Tears started to sting his eyes and he cried into Jack's shoulder. What if he had died? What would have happened? What would the Chosen Ones have done if they had lost the Dragon of the Wind? What would Jack have done? What if he would have turned Jack into an empty shell forever, like he said he was without Raimundo? What if...

Jack settled Raimundo down onto the ground, the air still keeping the water from capturing them. Then, with a smile, he reached out and picked up the cup, holding it by his side. Raimundo was so shocked. He had forgotten all about the Showdown and why he had almost died in the first place. The water swirled around them. It brought them back to the surface, where it had all started. With a few bright flashes and another sudden smile from the pale boy, they were back on the two rocks.

The others came over, including Wuya. "Are you all right, Rai?" Kimiko asked, concerned.

"Did you retrieve the new Shen Gong Wu?" Omi said.

"What happened?" Clay questioned, fingering the brim of his hat.

Raimundo glanced up at Jack, who was being congratulated by Wuya. Jack noticed this and glanced back, shooting him a knowing smile. _Another smile_, thought Raimundo. He didn't know what those meant, but watching him fly away with his ghostly companion, he decided that he'd figure out.

--------------------

Jack stumbled into his room, exhausted as hell. He collapsed on his bed, head first into the pillow. His goggles slid off his forehead and his flaming red hair and landed on the floor. Jack groaned and fished his hand out to try and find the missing goggles. When they didn't meet his fingertips, he turned his head and saw that they were lying a couple feet away. He groaned a second time and tumbled out of his bed, rolling over until the goggles were an inch from his head. Sitting up, he fixed them on and looked up, gasping at what he saw.

It was one of his newest robots. He usually kept his robots downstairs in the basement, otherwise known as his "Evil Lair", but this one he kept in his room, in private so no one could see. He had only started it a couple days ago. But he was so determined to finish this one, he worked hard day and night for its completion.

It was a robot of Raimundo.

He had thought of the idea after Raimundo left his bedroom. He realized that he really felt lonely without the tanned boy, so he decided to create a Raimundo for himself. A Rai-bot, he called it. Looking a bit closer, he saw that it was nearly complete. The head was already finished, the young boy's tan face, green eyes staring out into space. Everything else was basically finished as well, just for a few touches here and there. Reaching his hand out, he grabbed an abandoned wrench and started securing a screw.

In just a few minutes, Jack stood up to meet a finished Rai-bot. He beamed at himself and dropped the wrench at his feet. He felt the back of the robot's head for the switch. Brown locks were under his fingertips. Unlike the Chameleon bot, he made Rai-bot's hair real, not metal. And it was real skin, too. Clothes and everything. He had made him as human as possible. And invented the perfect chip for Raimundo's behavior. And then, flicking on the switch, Rai-bot turned to life.

The Raimundo Doppelganger took a couple minutes just looking around the room, as if trying to remember where he was. Then he noticed Jack and almost jumped in surprise. "Jack Spicer?"

"Hey, Raimundo. What's up?" Jack said as friendly as he could be.

"Why am I in your room?"

"You don't remember? The booze must've gotten to you. We were just hanging out, you know, playing some video games, soccer, basketball, all that stuff. We ate chips and soda while we were playing video games at night and you must've gotten knocked out. You were out cold. So I just let you stay over." Jack said, reciting his carefully practiced explanation. Then, with a shy manner, he said, "But you should probably head back to the Temple now."

This was a hoax. When making Rai-bot's personality chip, he made a few adjustments so that he'd stay here forever. So that he'd want to be here with Jack. So that he'd love Jack. Hey, you couldn't blame an evil genius for wanting something, right?

Rai-bot stared at him for a moment, blinking thoughtfully. He seemed to consider Jack's suggestion for a while, then shook his head slowly. "No, I... I want to stay here with you, Jack."

Jack grinned. Then he stepped forward and captured him in his arms. It was a while before Rai-bot hugged him back with just as much vigor, neither one letting go.

"You'll stay with me forever, right, Raimundo? You'll keep me company... you won't make me feel lonely... or leave me, like you do in those dreams..." then he corrected, "nightmares..."

"Yes, Jack... I won't leave you... Why would I leave the one I love?" Rai-bot whispered softly.

Either from happiness of hearing that, or sadness that it would never really happen, Jack started to cry. He cried into Rai-bot's shoulder and Rai-bot walked him over to the bed and they both sat down, Rai-bot rocking him back and forth and reassuring him that everything would be all right.

---------------------

Jack spent the next couple days with Rai-bot, playing video games, basketball, and soccer; talking to each other and laughing playfully; lying in bed together while Jack cried himself to sleep yet again with mixed happiness and sorrow.

One day, after a humiliating defeat in a Xiaolin Showdown with Kimiko, the boy genius stumbled into his bedroom, waving off Wuya. Wuya often slept in the basement with his robots, but lately she'd been trying to sleep in Jack's room. Long ago, Jack had told her to never go in his room, so she never did, even though she could have gone through the walls. He didn't want her to see his Rai-bot, so he denied. But he promised her that he'd make a little bed for her, made out of a basket and a couple small blankets. Satisfied for the time being, Wuya floated off downstairs, or out the door, or wherever she was going.

"Hey, Jack. Where'd you go?" Jack looked up to see Rai-bot getting off his bed and starting to move towards him.

"Somewhere in the mountains. I had a Xiaolin Showdown with Kimiko. Race to the bottom of the mountain. Her Third Arm Sash against my Fist of Tebigong. Lost pretty badly." Jack said calmly.

Rai-bot frowned as if he was thinking deeply. He cupped Jack's cheek and leaned in for a kiss. Jack kissed back with as much emotion, moving against the lips upon his. He had missed his robot friend, but he was starting to think this remedy wasn't as good-- not to mention, as clean-- as he thought it would be. He began to think it was a dirty way of trying to get rid of his loneliness, but he couldn't stop. It was like an addictive drug. He just couldn't stop. Partly because he didn't want to be lonely again, and partly because it was Raimundo.

He was still in-love with Raimundo. The _real_ Raimundo. But they had so less time to talk or even fight, that it just seemed like they would never have a chance together. Jack still believed, but he knew there were so many things blocking him from getting Raimundo, that he just lowered himself to dreaming. _In very nasty ways._

"Uh, Jack?"

Jack felt Rai-bot break off, and looked to his doorway, seeking out his intruder. If it was Wuya, that was not good. That was not good at _all._ But maybe then she's stop nagging about sleeping in the evil genius's room.

But with a sinking feeling, he saw that it was not Wuya. Not Wuya at all.

It was Raimundo.

The _real _Raimundo.

And that was even worse than Wuya.

Raimundo stood still for a second, surprised and confused green eyes darting from his own body to the one who made him. Jack saw that he was wearing the Golden Tiger Claws, and almost smacked himself in the head for not hearing them activate in his room. He had been so wrapped in his own thoughts and the kiss, that he hadn't bothered to listen for intruders.

"Who's that, and why does he look exactly like me?" Raimundo asked in a confused yet strict manner. Jack froze, feeling Rai-bot's own green eyes on him. He hadn't told Rai-bot he was a robot. Rai-bot believed he was the real Raimundo. And now, Rai-bot was going to hate him forever, even with that chip installed. And he'd lose yet another Raimundo, counting all the ones in his dreams.

"And why are you two in _that_ position?" During the kiss, Jack's hands had snaked their way around Rai-bot's neck, and Rai-bot's right hand was stationed on Jack's hip. Raimundo's eyes seemed to linger on Rai-bot's hand, and then a look of understanding dawned on his face. "Oh, Jack, you couldn't..." and then he looked straight into Jack's eyes, a look of disbelief and pity on his face. "Jack..."

"Jack, what's going on?" Jack flinched, and started to pull himself away from their embrace. Rai-bot had finally spoke. But now it was too complicated. Why did Raimundo need to come in? He'd think Jack was a little sissy that couldn't take care of himself. And he'd pity him. Jack _hated_ pity.

Jack started backing away from both of them, looking as terrified as ever. Both Raimundos had their eyes on him, though one's were only filled with confusion and maybe a hint of anger, while the other's had sadness and self-disgust. "Jack?" they both asked, though Rai-bot's voice was demanding, and Raimundo's voice was gentle.

Jack was now down on his knees, eyes fixed on the floor. He just couldn't take it anymore. Confusion, self-hatred, anger, sorrow—too many emotions were going through him at the same time, it hurt. And not having anything else to do, he just sat there and cried. Cried more than he ever did in his dreams, or after he woke up from those nightmares, only to find that he still hadn't managed to win over Raimundo's heart. Cried like there was no tomorrow.

Raimundo was pained to see that he was the one to make Jack cry like that, but moved on to the other problem. He faced Rai-bot, who had already turned away from Jack in that same confusion. Rai-bot frowned at him. "Who are you? Why did you make Jack cry?"

Raimundo flinched at the last question, but kept his ground. "I'm Raimundo. The _real_ Raimundo. You're just a robot. Jack created you to get rid of his loneliness."

Rai-bot looked surprised at first. Then he seemed determined to believe he was the real Raimundo. "No, you're wrong! _I'm_ the real Raimundo! I love soccer, I love video games, I love _Jack!"_

Raimundo was taken aback. He glanced at Jack's weeping figure, then rolled up his sleeves. "This is for your own good."

Then, with a jump and a kick, Rai-bot was lying in pieces all over the carpeted floor. Jack gave a high-pitched scream and stared at Rai-bot's detached head. He started shaking all over. "When I see a robot get destroyed right in front of my eyes, my heart breaks a little bit more."

"I'm sorry, Jack. I really am." Raimundo said, crouching down in front of Jack, looking back at the machine body of himself. Then he turned back to Jack. "But you can't do this. You can't get away from your loneliness this way. It's not healthy."

"It was the only way!" Jack exclaimed. "I can't have you, Raimundo. You belong to Kimiko. So why can't I just dream? Why can't I just pretend that everything's perfect? It'll make me feel so much better, Rai..."

Raimundo felt a stab of pain in his chest. Why was he the one that Jack loved? Why hadn't it been Clay, or Chase Young, or maybe even Kimiko herself? _I guess that's just how love works, isn't it?_ Raimundo thought bitterly. He picked Jack up from the floor easily and they both sat down on his bed. Jack cried into Raimundo's shoulder and Raimundo frowned sadly in the distance. Why was everything so complicated? Why did love have to bring so much pain? Was that even normal?

"Why didn't you come visit, Raimundo...?" Jack whispered once he had stopped crying enough so that his breath came out in shallow gasps and his words didn't come out in moans.

Raimundo turned sharply at Jack on his shoulder. Why hadn't he visited him? He was too busy, wasn't he? Chores, training, seeking Shen Gong Wu—there simply wasn't enough time. So Raimundo told him that. But Jack said that Raimundo could've visited at night, when everyone else was asleep. And then Raimundo retorted that if he had been gone every night, eventually someone would catch him and he didn't want anyone to suspect anything.

This got Jack to cry again. Raimundo sighed. It sounded as though he was ashamed to be with Jack. And Jack probably thought that, too. Why did he always manage to hurt him? Couldn't he just say one thing without hurting the poor redhead?

And so Raimundo did the one thing he knew would comfort Jack.

He kissed him. On the lips.

Jack gasped and froze. He didn't know what to do. Slowly, Raimundo's hand lifted to rest on Jack's hip, making Jack close his eyes and moan. Wasn't this what he wanted? _But it's so wrong,_ Jack thought. _Raimundo belongs to Kimiko. I shouldn't be doing this with him. He shouldn't be doing this to me. _But even before he could think about why the brunette was kissing him anyway, he was pushed back into his bed, head landing on his pillow. Raimundo moved his lips against Jack's and kissed him again while they both attempted to get comfortable on the bed. Raimundo ended their kiss and nuzzled Jack's neck with his nose. Jack felt so comfortable like this, so happy and content, he relaxed from his tense position. In truth, Raimundo was comfortable like this, too, but he dare not admit it. So they both lay there on the bed. Together.

"Raimundo," Jack croaked after a couple minutes of relaxed silence.

"Hn," Raimundo murmured into Jack's neck. He gave it a couple kisses, emitting some long-drawn moans from the other boy before Jack spoke again.

"Don't do this to me." Confusion panged inside Raimundo and all he could do was stand there and wait for Jack to continue. "You're just trying to make me feel better... and this will help for a while... but when I wake up and see you that you've left... I'll feel lonelier than before..."

A pause. Then slowly, Raimundo pulled away from Jack's neck (much to Jack's chagrin) and stared at him questioningly. "What will make your loneliness go forever?"

Jack turned his head to look at him. Red eyes met green. "Stay with me."

Green eyes widened. He stood still, shocked. And suddenly, Jack felt like she shouldn't have said that. He tore his gaze from his love's eyes and looked up at the ceiling. Raimundo stared at him for a good three minutes before wrapping his arms around Jack and resting his cheek against his shirt-covered chest.

"I'm sorry..."

Jack flinched. He was afraid of that. But Raimundo never let go. So, feeling happy and the empty space filled inside of him, he fell into a deep sleep. And he didn't have a nightmare. He had a dream with Raimundo, yes, but Raimundo didn't leave. He stayed. And they had fun together. They did things friends would do, but sometimes they did things only lovers would do. Kiss, embrace, hold hands, all those things.

And when Jack woke up to find the brunette nowhere in sight, he felt lost and disheveled, and the emptiness filled him again, even stronger than before, just like he had promised.


	3. Chapter 3

Kimiko played an ace down on the growing pile of cards. She watched as Clay and Omi stared at their own cards in their hand, struggling to find something to beat the ace. Kimiko sighed. No one could ever beat her at this game. That's why it was so _boring._

She heard footsteps behind her and turned around, hoping to see the boy of her dreams. And there he was. Raimundo Pedrosa, in his white hoodie and green pants, looking quite happy for himself. At once, Kimiko ran up to him.

"Hi, Raimundo!" she exclaimed, smiling.

"Hey, Kim." Raimundo said calmly, though she could tell he was grinning underneath.

"Rai, you wanna play some Ducks and Hammers?" Clay asked, motioning to the cards.

"Despite the weird name, sorry. I volunteered for guard duty tonight." Raimundo said, smiling apologetically.

Kimiko quirked an eyebrow. "But you hate guard duty! Why'd you volunteer?"

The brunette shrugged. "I guess I should do it once in a while."

Kimiko stared at him as he kept talking. Something was wrong. Why was he so happy about guarding some Shen Gong Wu? It wasn't as if they were gonna start dancing or something. And guard duty wasn't the most fun job, either. You had to stay there all night without company.

"You want me to help?" Kimiko volunteered. She could make the job fun by talking to him and doing other things. She could just picture it right then, Raimundo laughing at her jokes... Raimundo singing a song with her... Raimundo sleeping as Kimiko took over the job, sitting in his lap...

"Sorry, but you should get some rest." the Dragon of the Wind said, placing a hand on her shoulder and bringing her out of her thoughts. "I saw you training your butt off earlier. Just get some rest, okay?" He winked. "I'll see you in the morning."

And he left. Kimiko stared at his retreating back, feeling a small hole in her heart of the news that she could not be with Raimundo. But Raimundo wanted her to rest. And if he did, she would rest. She knew that Raimundo would be fine guarding the Shen Gong Wu. What could possibly happen, anyway?

------------------------

After about an hour of walking the border of the Shen Gong Wu vault, Raimundo stopped dead in his tracks and looked around. He then darted to the front and looked around outside. Once he saw the coast was clear, he quickly rang the secret chime of the bells, raced inside, and took out the Golden Tiger Claws. He smiled while fastening it on his hand, thinking about where he would be going. _Who_ he would be going to. And with a quick jab at the air, a portal opened, and Raimundo stepped into it, waiting anxiously to get to the other side.

Raimundo found himself in, the one and only, Jack Spicer's room. There was no sign of Jack anywhere. Perhaps he was under the Shroud of Shadows, which he had actually won from Clay just days ago?

"Thanks for the dinner, Mom!" called a voice just outside of the door. Raimundo looked up to see the door wide open, a red-haired boy standing in the doorway, grinning like he had never grinned before.

"Raimundo!" He squealed, throwing himself to the other boy. Raimundo released an "oof!" when Jack landed on him, making him fall to the floor, but smiled all the same. He loved seeing Jack like this, laughing openly, smiling like a buffoon, holding onto him like never before. He loved seeing Jack so... at ease like this.

For the last couple weeks, Raimundo had been visiting Jack at night, playing games with him, talking and laughing with him, doing all kinds of stuff. They had become pretty good friends now. Jack was no longer sad or lonely, at least that's what Raimundo thought and hoped. He didn't love Jack, no, but being friends was the closest he could get.

"So, what d'you wanna do?" Jack said childishly, after he let go of Raimundo. He was now sitting in-between Raimundo's legs, which had been parted when Jack had almost tackled Raimundo. He had so much happiness in his eyes that Raimundo wanted to shower his face with kisses.

Raimundo smirked. "How about some air hockey?"

"Nah, air hockey's boring. I bet I'll kick your butt at Soul Caliber Two!"

Raimundo laughed. "That again? You haven't beaten me once these past three days."

"But I bet I'll beat you this time! I have all the luck in the world!"

"Not really, or else you'd be ruling the world by now."

"Who'd rather rule the world than have you?"

Silence. Raimundo looked down at Jack, opening and closing his mouth, not knowing what to say. Slowly, a look of understanding came to Jack's face and he immediately apologized. "It just kinda slipped out. Sorry."

"No, it's all right." Jack looked up in surprise, only to see Raimundo getting up and walking over to Jack's entertainment system and pulling out a Game Cube. Jack watched Raimundo plug it in and scrambled over to his side, offering help. Raimundo just smiled, plugging in the rest of the cords before tossing a controller at him. In just a moment, the two boys were playing almost brutally, pressing the buttons at the speed of sound and moving the controller in the direction their character was facing, but still playfully. In just ten minutes, Jack had already seen the "1P wins; 2P loses" screen twenty times. He scowled when he saw it again, Raimundo smirking, trying not to burst out laughing.

"You really suck at this game, you know that?" The brunette said teasingly.

"Shut up!" Jack snapped. He threw the controller at the screen. It hit it with a loud _clunk_ and then landed on the Game Cube with another _clunk_. The screen immediately froze, the characters paralyzed in their fighting stances.

"Jack!" Raimundo snapped, pointing at the screen and frowning at the boy.

"I'll fix it later, don't worry." Jack said, waving his hand like he didn't care. He walked over to his bed and sat on the edge. Raimundo smiled. Somehow, he forgot that Jack was a genius with technology.

Raimundo jumped up from the floor and sat next to Jack. Jack didn't have any reaction at all, to this. Raimundo wrapped his arm around Jack's shoulder and pulled the redhead towards him. Jack obediently rested his head against Raimundo's shoulder.

"Jack," Raimundo began, almost tentatively. "I'm... sorry I told you, you sucked."

"That's all right," Jack responded, burying his nose in Raimundo's neck. "It's true, isn't it?"

Raimundo wondered why it felt so comfortable like this.

"Is everything all right? You still got those dreams?" Raimundo asked softly.

A pause. "Yeah. They keep coming back." Jack said. "Maybe it's because I don't have you yet."

Raimundo winced. "You... don't have me?"

Jack moved away from Raimundo's neck to look at him straight in the eye. "You don't love me. And I'll keep having those dreams _until_ you love me."

Raimundo looked pained. There was nothing he could do, then. Jack would always be lonely if he didn't love Jack back, which he doubted he'd ever do. Raimundo held Jack tightly in his arms, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. He wanted to help the red-haired boy so badly, but it seemed he couldn't. He had tried so hard, only to find that it didn't help. Nothing ever helped.

"That means I should go then, right?" Raimundo whispered over Jack's shoulder. "If being your friend won't help you, I should stop."

"Is that the only reason you've been here? To stop my dreams?" Jack said sharply, pushing Raimundo away from him. He glared at the other boy, who looked surprised and frightened. "You don't actually _want_ to be my friend, you just want me to stop crying over something that's never going to happen? _What kind-of sick person are you?_"

Raimundo sighed and hung his head. He knew he could be of no help. He was never a help to the Xiaolin Warriors, so how could he be a help to Jack Spicer?

"I'm... I'm sorry," Raimundo's voice cracked. He lifted a single finger to wipe off his tears. "I never meant to hurt you. I wanted to help you. I wanted you to be happy." He was sobbing now and he couldn't stop himself. Tears were everywhere, dampening clothes and blankets. "I'm so sorry."

Suddenly he felt his head being lifted. Two pale, cold hands were on each side of Raimundo's face. Green eyes met red. "Don't be sorry, Raimundo." Jack whispered, looking sad, lost and disheveled. "You being my friend was the best thing that ever happened to me. You were the best friend I've ever had."

Raimundo hiccupped and smiled weakly. "And now it's over, right? We'll never be friends again."

"It doesn't have to be that way!" Jack said, almost desperately. "We can still be friends. We can still play around, hang out, everything like that. We don't have to stop, just because my dreams haven't gone away!" Jack stopped for a second, gazing into Raimundo's green orbs and regaining his breath. "Please stay."

Raimundo's breathing was still shallow and unsteady, but he seemed to have calmed down a bit. At least he wasn't crying anymore.

Then Raimundo leaped at him, throwing his tanned arms around Jack's neck, throwing Jack off balance and making him land on his back, against the bed. Raimundo had his lips firmly pressed against Jack's, eyes tightly closed as if scared to open them. They stood there for god knows how long.

Finally, Raimundo pulled away. Jack looked at Raimundo as if not knowing what reaction would come. Raimundo's face was blank, which worried the pale boy even more.

Then Raimundo broke into a smile. "I'll stay. I'll come back to you."

Jack gave a small gasp and smiled himself, feeling his heart lift.

"But not right now. I gotta go. It's getting late." Raimundo said.

And with a small peck at the cheek, Raimundo slashed the air and left, leaving a fairly happy Jack behind.

---------------------------------

For the next few weeks, Raimundo was going to Jack's house almost every night. He'd say he'd go on a walk, or go to a soccer game somewhere in Brazil, make up any kind of excuse, just so he could Golden-Tiger-Claws his way over to Jack's house, where they'd play and hang out until midnight. Sometimes, Raimundo would even sleep with him, just to make sure Jack was okay, and return to the Xiaolin Temple early in the morning.

But it wasn't as if no one noticed these disappearances of the brunette. Kimiko was starting to worry about him. Where was he going all the time? Why was he always so eager to leave? Was he just trying to get away from her, or the others? Was he returning to someone every night?

She had asked Clay. "Ah, give it a rest, Kim. He probably just wants some fresh air. You know how much he hates chores and misses his home. Maybe he just wants to visit some of his old homes, you know?"

She had asked Omi. "I do not believe Raimundo is going to some secret girl every night. I believe Raimundo is practicing, so that he could one day become better than me!... even though he will never be better than me."

Kimiko sighed. Where was her darling brunette when she needed him?

"Do not worry, Kimiko. I am sure Raimundo is in good hands." Kimiko felt a hand on her shoulder, and wheeled around. Master Fung. "If it really does bother you, why not go and ask him?"

"But I don't even know where he is!" Kimiko said, clenching her teeth in frustration.

"Well then, you could wait until he comes back, or—" Suddenly, Kimiko had bolted off the spot, leaving dust rise in Master Fung's confused face. She just had a brilliant idea. Why hadn't she thought of it before?

Racing into the Shen Gong Wu vault, Kimiko hurriedly clicked the bells, which chimed their secret song to open the vault. Once the first step lowered, she dashed onto it, waited impatiently for the others to lower, then ran in. The Japanese girl looked around, trying to find the right Shen Gong Wu. She brightened when she saw it. She delicately pushed open the drawer-like thing, and took out the Shen Gong Wu she was just looking for.

"Crystal Glasses!" She exclaimed. Her eyes saw through the diffractive glass, Raimundo holding a Playstation II controller, tongue sticking out like it always did when he was playing a video game. Kimiko was confused. Raimundo never played Playstation games—just arcade or Gameboy. And where was he, right now? He sure wasn't at the arcade, since the floor was carpeted, and there was a bed right behind him. He was in a house, a bedroom. But... who's?

Kimiko gasped when she looked to the right, next to Raimundo. A flaming-red haired boy was holding another controller, sweating and looking pitiful. (He was probably losing the game) Kimiko shrieked. _Jack Spicer?_ _Jack_ was the one he was going to, almost every night? _Jack_ was the one Raimundo was always smiling about when he was telling them he was going somewhere?

But... why?

Kimiko started looking for another Shen Gong Wu.

---------------------------

1P WINS.

"Again." Jack grunted. "How many more times are you going to win, I wonder?"

"Every time, as long as we keep playing this game." Raimundo said, smirking and leaning against Jack's bed. "C'mon, let's play something else."

"No!" Jack snapped stubbornly. "Not until I beat you at this game!"

Raimundo sighed playfully. He reset the game and picked someone else this time. Raimundo picked his strongest character, Kilik—the man who used a rod and killed his whole temple, according to Soul Caliber history—and Jack picked his usual character, Maxi—the man who used nunchaku and both his parents were deceased, according to Soul Caliber history—determination written on his face. Raimundo planned to let Jack win this time. Just to make him happy.

But before the game had even started, the Serpent's Tail went through the wall, followed by another figure. The figure landed in the middle of Jack's room, glaring at both Jack and Raimundo. Then Raimundo gasped.

"_You!"_ Kimiko managed to spit out from gritted teeth. "_You lied to _all _of us!"_

Deep regret hit Raimundo, and his eyes saddened. Jack looked from Kimiko to Raimundo, confusion written in every part of his face.

"Who knew you'd been going to _this _place every day! You'd just make excuses to come see him, wouldn't you? You'd be at Jack's house, playing around, huh? Wasn't I good enough for you? What does _he_ have that I don't, Rai?"

"Kim, it's nothing like that—"

"Oh, of_ course_ it isn't. Tch, you can't hide _anything else from me anymore, Rai. _No one but me thought there was something wrong with you, leaving all the time. 'I'm going to a soccer game', 'I'm going on a walk', 'I'm going to go shopping just for a little bit'—well, not anymore!" Kimiko was red with anger. Her blue eyes glared daggers at Raimundo, who seemed helpless and regretful. "_You are coming with me, Raimundo!"_

Green eyes widened. Then, Raimundo stood up slowly. He dropped the controller at his feet. Jack watched him longingly. He couldn't go. He couldn't leave Jack. Not after everything they had been through. Not right before Jack was going to beat Raimundo with his master plan.

Raimundo turned his head to look at Jack, green eyes full of so much sorrow, it made Jack choke. Jack stared back, almost about to burst into tears. _Don't go..._ Jack thought, _Don't leave me... Please._.. Raimundo read him like a book, and smiled softly. Jack blinked. What did that mean? What did that single smile mean?

But before he could figure out, Raimundo was taken by the arm, and both Dragons Serpent's-Tailed their way out of the room, leaving Jack helpless and lonely, still trying to figure out what that smile meant.

--------------------------------

Raimundo sighed. He held up the mop in the air, then plunked it down in the bucket of water. He took the long stick out of the bucket, and splat it on the marble floor. He frowned as he moved the mop in circles.

"No, I do not believe that Raimundo was coinciding with the enemy!" Omi's shouts echoed from the other room. He would be eating right now, if Master Fung hadn't assigned him this job as punishment for ruining the Xiaolin way. "He was making a secret, elaborate plan to stop Jack Spicer, if need be!"

"Omi, will you just cut it out?" Kimiko said, sighing. She still sounded angry. "Raimundo was hanging out with _Jack Spicer,_ as in, the Jack Spicer we train to defeat every day!"

"What is so forbidden about liking the enemy?" Raimundo slowed down his ministrations to the floor to listen closer. "A foe turned to a friend is the most valuable thing. Everyone has a good side, and Raimundo is unlocking it. He is _helping_ us, not betraying us! He is still loyal to us! He still loves us!"

Raimundo stood shock still. Then he sighed and smiled, shaking his head. Omi, Omi, Omi. He always cared for Raimundo's hide, even when he was evil. He always tried to get Raimundo back if he was captured by the forces of darkness. Omi was always there for him.

Omi was the only one there for him.

He heard Kimiko sigh. "We're not really sure of that, Omi. We're not sure if Raimundo was helping him, or going to the Dark Side, or turning into his friend, or what. For now, let's just wait. Let's just wait and see what happens."

And so they waited. Raimundo spent all his time with the rest of them. He ate, trained, and slept with the rest of them. It was the same thing he'd been doing all month, except this time he didn't see Jack every day. He was sadder when he trained. He was sadder in general. He cried himself to sleep. He didn't know why. Maybe it was because he just missed the guy. Missed the guy and his flaming red hair and beautiful ruby eyes. Missed all the video games, all the fun. Missed having someone to play with, who liked the same things as him. He just missed him.

"Jack..." He moaned quietly while in his bed. Raimundo closed his eyes, and a lone tear slid down his cheek.

Silence. Everyone was asleep, except Raimundo. Another tear slid down. Raimundo needed him.

"...Raimundo?"

Green eyes snapped open. He sat up in his mat and looked at his intruder. He almost screamed in glee from what he saw.

"Jack!" Raimundo whispered happily. And there he was, red hair spiking up in all ways, red sleeve-less shirt standing out like blood in the dark, ruby eyes looking happy, yet sad.

"Raimundo? What's wrong?" Jack walked up to him and bent down. He spotted Raimundo's bloodshot eyes and the tear tracks down his cheeks. A look of pain hit Jack. "Are you okay?"

Raimundo threw his arms around the boy's neck. He sobbed into Jack's shoulder. "They—they won't let me go anywhere—hic—they keep me trapped—in here—hic—there's nothing I can do—there's nothing—"

"Shhh," Jack cooed, patting his head. "We can't be too loud."

Raimundo pulled away slightly and looked at Jack. "I've missed you."

Jack was surprised. Then he smiled softly and combed his hand through Raimundo's brown locks. "I've missed you, too. More."

Raimundo childishly shook his head. "I was the one who always came to visit you."

Jack cupped Raimundo's cheek. "Yeah, but I'm in-love with you."

Raimundo paused. Then hung his head. "Oh right." He didn't add, 'I forgot'.

Jack lifted the brunette's head up with the hand that was on Raimundo's cheek and kissed him gently. Raimundo gasped, but then kissed him back, leaning into the kiss. They kissed for the next few minutes, each wrapped in the other's warmth. Then, Jack pulled away. Raimundo frowned at the loss of lips on his own. Jack was surprised, but then laughed.

"You're so cute." Jack whispered, ruffling Raimundo's hair. Raimundo's eyebrows rose.

Then Jack leaned forward and kissed Raimundo on the forehead. He pressed his forehead against Raimundo's, and looked into green eyes. "I'll be back. Don't worry." Then he added, "Don't cry."

Raimundo nodded. Jack gave a quick smile, then walked away. And Raimundo smiled, falling back in his mat once again, though this time, he didn't cry.

----------------------

It was Jack and Raimundo, all over again. Except this time, Jack would go to Raimundo. Jack would fly over there in his Evil Jet Black Jet, since he didn't have the Golden Tiger Claws. They would whisper to each other, kiss, hug, lie in bed with each other. And it was only after the fifth visit, that Raimundo thought he had to put an end to this.

Kimiko was right, in some way. Jack was evil. Well, he was at least on the side of evil. And Raimundo was on the side of good, the side that kicks evil's butt. Some might say that the world isn't separated into good and evil. But if you're talking about the people he always saw, the world, or at least his world, is definitely separated into good and evil.

He remembered what his dream doppelganger said in that depressing dream of Jack's. _Jack, this is for your own good. I can't keep fighting for good if I love someone on the other side. What we have, Jack, is never going to work. I can never be a bad guy; you can never be a good guy. I love you, but it's as if I'm not allowed to love you._

But was that true?

Did Raimundo love Jack?

Or was he just playing with the boy's heart?


	4. Chapter 4

Kimiko and Raimundo had broken up.

It had been when Raimundo had been in a Showdown with Jack. It was a race on the mountain tops, jumping from one high peak to the next. The Dragon had used the Sword of the Storms to blow Jack away from a particularly sharp peak, which caused the red-haired boy to fall down, even if he _did_ have his Heli-pack, or whatever he called it. Startled, Raimundo quickly used his wind powers to fly down to Jack and catch the falling boy in his arms. Then, without even looking at the other boy, Raimundo flew up to a mountain peak and landed on one foot. Raimundo looked down at Jack. Jack stared back, but then his eyes switched gaze to behind Raimundo. Jack grinned evilly, and jumped out of the brunette's arms to grab the new Shen Gong Wu, which was floating in the air.

And after blinding lights, Kimiko ran up to Raimundo and told him that if he just had not saved Jack, he would've won the Showdown. Raimundo, slightly annoyed at Jack, was aware of that, but he told her that someone's life is more valuable then a piece of metal. Kimiko had paused, then guessed aloud that he was still seeing Jack. Raimundo said he was.

Kimiko blew up right then. She burst out crying, but remained shouting at Raimundo. "Why're you still seeing that little jerk? Aren't I more important than him? Are you going back to the evil side, Rai?"

"I'm not going to the evil side, Kim! I'm not turning evil, but what does it matter if I'm friends with Jack? Why do you care so much?"

"I'm worried about your safety! I'm worried about your saneness!"

"Well, you should stop, because it's none of your business what I do with my life!"

Kimiko had paused. "You don't love me anymore, do you?"

Raimundo had sighed and looked down at his feet. "No, Kim... I don't."

------------------------

Raimundo didn't know how he lost his love for the little girl. He could be friends with Jack, and have a relationship with her, right? Raimundo sighed. He guessed he could either have one or the other.

He was still not allowed to go actually visit Jack. Master Fung kept him from doing that. And if he betrayed Master Fung, like he had betrayed Kimiko, it would really be just like going to the Dark Side. And he didn't want that, no matter how much he liked Jack.

Yes, he liked Jack. He liked him very much, but not close to love. He wasn't in-love with Jack; just friends. At least, he chose to believe that, but little did he know that he, in fact,_ did_ love Jack, and broke up with Kimiko because the love for her was replaced by the love of Jack.

But still, Raimundo had no clue.

It was awkward when Raimundo and Kimiko were in the same room now. They couldn't talk normally, they couldn't train normally. It was as if their teamwork had disappeared, as well. Every time Raimundo and Omi were training together, doing chores together, doing anything of any sort together, Kimiko would burst out crying and ran away from both of them, and would not come back until twenty minutes later.

A broken heart, Raimundo thought, could do so much.

He had told Jack that he needed some alone time for now. He didn't want any company; he just needed to be alone, apart from everyone else.

Why did it all feel so wrong, yet so right? Being with Jack… it was too much of a hassle for him. He didn't know what the relationship between him and Jack was anymore. He didn't know anything anymore. He just wanted it all to stop… he wanted everything to leave him alone…

Raimundo often went on these little walks, where his mind would be free, and he would just think to himself, daydream. He needed to set some things right. Everything was flipped and crazy. He just needed… everything… to be… right...

"What's the matter, young child?" Raimundo blinked. Standing in front of him was a man in shining gold armor, long jet black hair, piercing yellow eyes and slits for pupils…

Raimundo narrowed his eyes. "Chase Young."

Chase Young had never come to him before. It was only to Omi. Chase always came to inspect Omi, even if he couldn't take the yellow boy on his side anymore. Chase never paid any close attention to Raimundo. That's why the brunette was surprised when he heard what the man said next.

"I see you've fallen in-love with my little admirer, Jack Spicer."

Very surprised, indeed.

"I… _what?_" Raimundo blurted. Did he just say the Dragon was in-love with Jack? But… that couldn't be true, could it? They were only friends… well, in Raimundo's point-of-view, anyway. Jack was in-love with _Raimundo_, yes, but Raimundo wasn't in-love with Jack…

Was he?

"Stop denying it." Chase said, rolling his eyes. "How long have you been seeing him?"

_Seeing him…_ That made it sound like he was… going out with him, or something. And he definitely wasn't doing that. They were just… friends…

… Right?

"_How long have you been seeing him?"_ Chase repeated, a little more demanding.

Raimundo shook his head quickly, making his hair swish back and forth. "I'm not _seeing _Jack--"

"How. long. have. you. been. _seeing._ him. Raimundo." Definitely a demand this time. Chase was glaring at him, too. That couldn't be a good sign.

Raimundo narrowed his eyes. "For about one and a half months now."

"And you still refuse to love him? He's pouring out his love for you. He has been, even before you started to see him--"

"I'm not _seeing _him, all right, Chase? We're not _going out, _or-- or we're not-- we don't--"

Chase smirked. Raimundo sighed. "Why deny it, Raimundo? Why deny it when you _know_ it's true." Then Chase's smirk disappeared, and glowing yellow eyes stared down at him. Hard. "You love him, Raimundo."

For a second, Raimundo refused to believe it. Why should he listen to a crazy evil guy like Chase Young? But then, he let down his barriers and let the truth sink in. Was that why he had a hole in his heart when he wasn't with Jack? Was that why his love for Kimiko had died? Was that why he thought about him so much…dreamed about him… his beautiful ruby eyes… his flaming red hair… those soft lips…

Raimundo _did_ love him.

The Brazilian smiled to himself. This realization… this love… it wasn't a simple crush, like with Kimiko… this was _love…_ this was _true_ love… He loved Jack… He loved Jack with all his heart.

But he still wondered something.

"Why do you--" _care if I love him or not_, Raimundo was about to ask the Evil Lord, when he noticed Chase had gone while Raimundo thought about loving Jack.

Raimundo frowned. Hopefully, this wasn't a trick.

------------------------------------

Raimundo landed in Jack's room, the portal caused by the Golden Tiger Claws behind him, slowly fading. He looked up with a grin. "Jack, guess wh--"

Raimundo froze. Green eyes stared in front with horror.

Jack was standing against the wall of his bedroom, eyes closed, position tensed. Pushing him against the wall was a small girl, standing on the tip of her heels to get to Jack's height, black hair tied up in pigtails, red dress flowing down to her ankles, a light blue sash tied around her waist, capturing his beloved Evil Boy Genius in a kiss… a passionate, deep one… moaning into his lips… running her hands through his red locks…

"K… Kimiko?" Raimundo stuttered.

Raimundo let the Golden Tiger Claws slip out of his hand. It landed with a loud _thud_ on the carpeted floor, but he paid no attention to it. His eyes grew wide as he watched the two embrace. He felt his heart slowly shatter, piece by piece… His breath hitched… He could no longer see… tears were obscuring his vision… everything turned blotchy and indistinguishable… his bottom lip began to quiver… his whole world began to slowly shatter…

Jack's eyes flew open, at the sound of Raimundo. The ruby eyes spotted him, and widened. Jack began to struggle to get Kimiko off him. It took a couple tries, but finally, Jack had successfully pulled the Japanese girl off him. Kimiko landed against the bed with a grimace, but then her eyes landed on Raimundo, who was trembling from head to toe. Kimiko smirked.

"Well, if it isn't Raimundo?" Then she glared at him with those blue eyes that used to be filled with so much _love._ "This is what you did while you were here, wasn't it? Making out with Jack all the time, breaking my heart without noticing it, without caring. Well, now you know how I feel, Rai! Now you know how it feels to be heartbroken!"

Raimundo exhaled sharply, and looked over at Jack, who was sitting down and leaning against the wall, hugging his knees. He needed an explanation. He needed to know _why_ Kimiko had kissed him. Surely she wouldn't just do it because she wanted to get revenge?

"Jack..?" Raimundo whispered. His voice cracked in desperation. Jack couldn't love Kimiko now… Jack loved him… _right?_

The flaming haired boy's head snapped up.

Red eyes met green.

Jack winced. He looked so pained… as if reliving the worst memory of his life… as if completely lost and disheveled… he looked so sorry… he looked so… _disgusted_ with himself…

"Jack?" Raimundo whispered, a little louder, a little more desperate… what did this look of utter pain mean?... What did this all _mean…?_

Jack looked back down at his knees, strands of red hair shielding his face from view. Raimundo's heart tore a little more. Jack couldn't even look at him…

What had he done to deserve all this?

And, even though those beautiful strands of hair were covering his face, even though Raimundo was at least three meters away from him, Raimundo could see the first of the many tears fall from the flaming-haired boy's eyes.

And Raimundo's heart just broke a bit more.

Then, with a sudden burst of anger, Raimundo turned to Kimiko, glaring at her venomously, so intense that it even made her gasp. He was shaking, not because of distress and sorrow, but because of anger and deep, deep hatred.

"You!" Raimundo spat vehemently. Kimiko flinched openly. "_You!_ How _dare_ you touch Jack! How _dare_ you make him cry like that! I thought you were _different_ from the other girls! I thought you actually had some sense, actually understood! But I guess I was wrong…!

"You are going to _pay_ for what you did to Jack!"

And without a second to lose, Raimundo leaped at Kimiko. Kimiko yelped under Raimundo's weight, trying to support him with her two skinny arms. Raimundo was seething with anger. For just that moment, he wanted to rip the little girl in two. He just wanted to demolish her, completely destroy her lithe body, until there was no sign of her alive. He wanted to make her completely _pay_ for what she did to Jack.

Kimiko yelped again. Raimundo gritted his teeth at her, his once calm green eyes, burning with anger. He tightened his grip on her shoulders, amusing himself as he saw Kimiko's face screw up in pain. He didn't feel any sympathy toward her. He didn't care that he was hurting her. The only thing that mattered was that this girl touched _his_ Jack.

Raimundo's hands slipped from the girl's shoulders, to her neck. He squeezed tightly, trying to bring the end of her story, the end of her life. Kimiko gasped and squeaked. She clawed the strong hands around her neck, desperately trying to save her some time, to save her life. Tears began to form in her crystal blue eyes, and they suddenly filled with sorrow and deep, deep regret. She choked, pulling at the tanned hands, tears flying everywhere.

Behind Raimundo, Jack got up and shouted for Raimundo to stop. But Raimundo didn't hear. He didn't hear anything other than Kimiko's choking noises and his own heart, beating anxiously as he sucked the breath and life out of his former lover.

And at that moment, she snapped. Her eyes turned red, and she snapped her hand forward. A green spark shot out, and if Raimundo hadn't moved a fraction of an inch downward, he would've been fried.

Of course, that wasn't all.

Behind him, Raimundo heard a gasp. He craned his neck, and saw Jack leaning slightly forward, eyes wide, expression in surprise and shock. And then it contorted with pain. His pale arms were wrapped around his torso, and as Jack began to fall-- Raimundo's hands flying off Kimiko's neck, and running over and catching the boy in his arms-- Raimundo knew why.

In Jack's midsection, there was a deep gash. Raimundo had dodged Kimiko's strange green spark, only to leave Jack wide open. Jack had gotten hit. And it was all Raimundo's fault.

Raimundo had never felt so horrible in his life.

Jack's eyes were closed, and his whole body had gone rigid, but the flaming haired boy was at least still breathing, and his heart was still pumping. Just very faintly.

Once again, Raimundo turned to Kimiko, eyes burning with anger. Kimiko was still recovering from Raimundo's suffocating attack, when Raimundo punched her, right in the nose.

Kimiko's head hit Jack's bed with a loud _thud._ She let out a slight exhale, but other than that, she made no sound. She had had enough.

Raimundo spotted something glinting on the floor, and picked it up. The Reversing Mirror. No matter how many times the Xiaolin Warriors tried, they could never win that Shen Gong Wu from Jack Spicer.

"Reversing Mirror!" Raimundo yelled, pointing at Jack. He needed to be healed. He needed to be reversed, so that everything was back to normal again…!

But, of course, nothing happened.

"_Reversing Mirror_!" He yelled again, shaking the glass. The mirror just glowed faintly. Nothing happened.

Then, with a final attempt and last resort, he pointed the mystical mirror at Kimiko. She was too dazed to notice.

Raimundo whispered the name. The mirror glowed bright this time. Kimiko gasped as her frame glowed gold. Raimundo blinked.

Somehow, it worked.

But that wasn't all.

Kimiko started… _transforming._ Her feet grew longer and fatter. Her arms did the same. Her torso grew broader. Her head changed shape, black hair growing out of the tight pigtails and falling down the back. Golden armor that glinted in the artificial room light fell over the new body, red robes disappearing. Blue eyes became brighter, yellow. Pupils grew thinner.

In the place where Kimiko used to be, was now Chase Young.

Equipped with the Moby Morpher.

It took a good five seconds for Raimundo to register what had just happened.

And then he snapped again.

"YOU!" Raimundo roared, pointing accusingly at the stoic man. "YOU FUCKING BASTARD!"

"Now, now, young warrior, it is not the time to use obscene language--"

"DON'T YOU TALK TO ME IN THAT I'M-BETTER-THAN-YOU WAY, YOU FUCKING OLD MAN! YOU KNEW I LOVED JACK, DIDN'T YOU? AND THEN YOU DID THIS, JUST SO I COULD BE HURT, AND YOU COULD ENJOY ME SQUEALING AND CRYING AND SUCKING THE LIFE OUT OF ONE OF MY FRIENDS--"

Raimundo continued to shout at the man, as Chase Young stood, unmoving, uncaring to whatever the young warrior was saying.

He barely missed the vow to kill the Evil Lord, and only started to pay attention when Raimundo started advancing towards him.

Chase raised an eyebrow, amused. "Do you _really_ think that's a good idea, Raimundo?"

Raimundo scoffed. "Of _course_ I think it's a good idea, _Chase._" He spat out the last word, as if some disgusting bug was in his mouth. His voice was dripping with malicious venom. "I'm going to make you _pay_ for what you did to Jack… for practically taking his life away from me… from right in _front_ of me…" then with an intense glare, "I'm going to break you apart!"

"Do you really think you have the chance?" Chase mocked, smirking teasingly.

Raimundo pursed his lips, and when Chase expected the tanned boy to leap at him, all the boy did was lift a single finger. He pointed it straight at Chase's heart.

There was a loud wave in the room, a great disturbance in the air. Raimundo felt it. Chase felt it. Chase definitely felt it. Because in just a second, Chase fell to the floor, face forward into the carpet.

Sonic boom.

It was a move Raimundo had been working on. Nobody had mastered the technique before. It was when you put all your focus and concentration on your target, and released a large enough amount of energy to decapitate the target with one hit. Silently. Quickly.

Raimundo didn't spend a minute to congratulate himself, or check if Chase was dead or not. He immediately rushed to Jack's side. The tanned boy held the limp body in his arms and brushed the stray hands of red hair out of the pale face.

"Jack…?" Raimundo whispered gently, a complete opposite to how he was before. "Jack… can you hear me?"

Jack groaned slightly, so softly it was barely audible. His eyelids slowly parted, revealing beautiful ruby eyes. Raimundo's breath hitched. Jack's eyes… _they were losing their color…_

"Rai… mundo…?" Jack mumbled, reaching his hand up to touch the face above him. The back of his pale hand brushed against Raimundo's cheek. Raimundo caught the hand in his own before it could drop.

Jack grimaced slightly. "I'm… losing time…"

"No… no, you can't…!" Raimundo gasped, pressing the cold hand against his cheek. "Don't… don't say that, Jack… everything's going to be fine, don't worry… everything'll be all right…"

Jack smiled weakly. "You're so beautiful…"

Tears started to form in Raimundo's eyes. It was just too much. To see his loved one just die openly like this… he couldn't cope with it much longer…

He _needed _Jack.

Jack almost frowned when he saw the tears threaten to overflow. "Don't cry… please don't cry…"

But the verbal support wasn't enough. Glistening drops of silver trailed down Raimundo's cheek and landed on the boy below. Raimundo sobbed like there was no tomorrow. Because in fact, there _was_ no tomorrow for a certain somebody. Jack shook his head, almost in disappointment.

"Raimundo… you know, I'll… always love you… right?" Jack whispered.

"Jack, I--"

"Shh…" Jack gazed at his lover's face intensely, as if taking it all in. He knew Raimundo could never love him. But it was okay. He didn't need to hear it. It hurt too much to know that inside, so wouldn't hearing it from his mouth just make it worse?

And Jack did _not_ want to feel hurt before he died.

"Just... promise me one thing…" Jack said, before violently coughing up metallic liquid. He guessed it was blood… it was soaking down his front, from the spark Kimiko had made… _it hurt so much…_ But he had to cope with it… just a little longer, as he poured the rest of his soul out to his lover before his time ran out…

A soft, 'anything' was the response he got, along with some more tears.

"Become the greatest Xiaolin Warrior… fulfill your dream…" and then, closing his eyes. "And get it into their thick skulls… that love like this isn't… wrong…"

"I will. Don't you worry, Jack, I will. And you'll be there to help me, right Jack? You'll be by my side, and we can both scream and shout at them until our voices get hoarse, when we're convincing them that this love… that this love isn't wrong… and we can play with each other all the time. It'll be Jack and Raimundo, all over again!"

Jack laughed softly, before letting a single smile grace his features. He was losing the battle… but it was okay… dieing in Raimundo's arms, and having the image of Raimundo as the last thing he saw was more than enough…

God, he was so beautiful…

"Raimundo…" Jack had to strain to keep his voice steady, when all he wanted was to collapse right there. It was so alluring, to just fall into nothingness right there. It was too hard to remain living.

"Oh, Jack… no, don't leave me…! Jack!" Raimundo desperately kissed Jack, trying to keep the boy alive… Jack couldn't leave him! Not now, not when they still had so much to say…

Raimundo broke off, and looked down at the dieing body in his arms. Jack looked so dead… but he wasn't… not yet…

"Just remember… I'll always… love you…"

Raimundo cried harder. "Jack… I…"

"And remember… to… keep… your… promise…"

"Jack, no! Jack, I… I…" Raimundo sobbed, gazing hopelessly at the boy below him, at the corpse below him.

Jack's arm had gone limp.

He was gone.

"I love you…"


	5. Chapter 5

Two weeks.

Two weeks since the incident had happened.

Two weeks since Jack had gone.

Two weeks since Raimundo started to be completely miserable.

He had locked himself up in his dorm, crying in his mat-that-wasn't-really-considered-a-bed. He cried into his pillow, and it was now almost completely drenched in tears, it mirrored the image of a tissue that that just been blown on. His blanket was also soaked in tears, but only the rim. He always held the blanket close, since it had Jack's scent all over it. He held it close to pretend that Jack was still there.

Since you couldn't really lock the dorm, the other Dragons visited from time to time. Kimiko was the most worried, right after Omi, who looked positively pained. Raimundo guessed that Kimiko was guilty. Guilty for accusing him for going to the Dark Side. Guilty for suggesting that loving Jack was wrong. She herself had cried a couple times, but still, no one could match the amount of tears they had shed, to Raimundo.

The Dragons delivered them food. They comforted him. They tried to make him smile. And they did manage to get a weak one out of him. But the smile was heart-breaking, since he still cried when he smiled. He never sobbed when there was company. He only cried silently. But he still cried; He always cried. And that was what hurt Kimiko and Omi the most.

"Raimundo, here's your dinner!" Kimiko chimed, sweeping aside the curtain. She hurried up to Raimundo and placed the meal in front of him. The steam from the chicken and rice rose to Raimundo's face like a petal being carried by the wind. Raimundo looked up at Kimiko from across his hot meal, and smiled weakly. A tear rolled down his face as he nodded and whispered, "Thank you,"

Kimiko hesitated, but then smiled widely, reminding herself that she was trying to lighten Raimundo's mood. She plopped herself down in front of the plate she had just given. She and Raimundo sat in silence, both of them looking down at the food.

Softly to keep the calm atmosphere, Kimiko murmured, "I'm sure he's in a better place."

"No, he's not." Raimundo blurted. "He said he was only happy when I'm there."

Kimiko sat up straight, and switched her gaze towards Raimundo. "That doesn't mean you're going to be suicidal, does it?"

Raimundo said nothing.

"But you can't! He wouldn't want you to die, just so he could be happy! Even if he _is_ evil, he couldn't be _that_ selfish and heartless--"

"How would you know, Kim?" Raimundo interrupted, glaring at her through his bangs. "You never knew him as well as I did. Nobody did. I'm the only thing that matters to him.

"Just… please… this doesn't concern you, Kim… Please stay out of this…"

Kimiko puffed out her cheeks, annoyed. She stood up and stomped herself to the curtain. When she swept aside the flimsy material, she heard Raimundo say behind her, "Kimiko,"

She paused. Raimundo had never called her Kimiko, since the time they had started to like each other. But she guessed that time was over, then.

But she still loved him so much…

"I… I'm sorry if I hurt you… ever…"

Kimiko was so surprised that she almost forgot that she was supposed to say something back. But instead, she turned to him, smiled and nodded, then walked away.

She just hoped the Dragon of the Wind would get better.

----------------------------

Raimundo walked steadily through the strangely familiar meadow, taking in the beautiful sight. Apart from the multi-colored grass, due to the flowers, it was completely white. But a comforting white, a beautiful white. He smiled softly to himself, looking around himself, looking at the ground, noting just _how many_ flowers there were. It would've been nice to give one to Jack.

"Raimundo," Raimundo's head snapped up. His breath hitched when he saw a lone figure in front of him, that wasn't there just a moment ago. The boy in sight smiled hesitantly, making the scene even more beautiful.

Raimundo began to tremble. His eyes started to well up with tears. The young boy just stared in shock, trying to remind himself over and over again, that this was just a dream…

The other boy tilted his head, still smiling, red hair flopping lightly against his head. "It's so great to see you again."

_Just a stupid dream…_

Raimundo had to tear his eyes away from the sight, closing them tightly. Fists curled up and started to shake by his sides. He repeated the words over and over again in his head. Nothing here was real. He was just back at home, sleeping in his dorm. This wasn't real. Jack wasn't there. Jack… couldn't be there…

If Raimundo's eyes were open, he would see that Jack's face had flickered with pain at Raimundo's movement.

"Raimundo…?" Jack murmured hesitantly, reaching out a hand, revealing the uneasiness in his voice. Raimundo's eyes fluttered open again; he looked unsurely at Jack, then grimaced. Raimundo's mouth mouthed the words in his mind, trying to convince himself that this wasn't real. His green eyes held tears that threatened to overflow.

Jack responded with an even more intense look of pain and, this time, a mix of confusion. Had he done something wrong?

"Don't cry, Raimundo… please…" Jack cooed softly.

"Shut up!" Raimundo suddenly ceased his mouthing and his convincing. Tears flowed unwillingly, unstoppably, down tanned cheeks. It was just too much… seeing his love there… _right there…_ yet he knew he wasn't there… he _couldn't_ be there…

Just why did it hurt so much?

"You don't know how it feels!" Raimundo yelled, tears of anger and hurt and so much _longing_, flowing down like an endless river. "Seeing you there… Darnit, Jack, I _wish _you were there… I so desperately wish this was true right now… _But it's not!..._ And that's what hurts most!... The fact that I can't touch you, can't kiss you, can't do _anything_ to you… Stop hurting me, Jack, stop--"

A pair of warm arms suddenly wrapped around him, pulling him into a warm embrace.

"Sh… it's okay… everything's going to be okay…" Jack whispered into Raimundo's ear, pressing his lips against the shell.

Raimundo tensed. Then, burying his face into Jack's neck, he cried again. Though, this time, they were tears of happiness. He could touch Jack. This was _real._ He threw away all cautions to the wind, all the thoughts of despair and sorrow, all the reasons of why or how he could actually _feel_ Jack if this was a dream, how this could be true. All that mattered was that he could feel Jack, he could hold him once more.

And now, he would _never_ let go.

-------------------------

"You're visiting, aren't you?"

It had been a quiet, comfortable silence after Raimundo had figured out he could feel Jack. They lay on the grassy earth, Raimundo sprawled on top of Jack, head resting against his chest, fisting a handful of Jack's shirt as if he were afraid the redhead would disappear if he let go. Jack was unconsciously raking through Raimundo's brown locks, kissing his scalp once in a while.

Jack grunted beneath Raimundo.

"I'm so happy to see you again." Raimundo whispered truthfully.

Jack gasped, almost inaudibly. Jack sat up, pulling Raimundo up with him. The brunette gazed at his lover, hands resting on Jack's crossed legs' knees. Jack laughed at the cute look that imitated a child discovering something new. Raimundo's right eye closed momentarily when Jack raked a hand through his hair again.

"I missed you a lot." Raimundo choked out. Jack smiled sadly, his hands slowing its raking, not meeting his love's eyes. Raimundo's bottom lip began to quiver…. His eyes started to fill up with tears again…. And before he knew it, Jack was back on his back, Raimundo's arms wrapped tightly around the redhead's neck.

"Don't leave me again, Jack… please… please don't…" Raimundo sobbed into Jack's shirt.

Jack sighed loudly, burying his nose into Raimundo's hair. He inhaled Raimundo's scent. He always smelled so good... "It's only a visit, Raimundo."

Raimundo sobbed some more. Jack's shirt began to get soaked with tears, but that didn't matter. That was the least of the two's problems right then. "Does-- does that mean you'll--hic--visit again?"

Raimundo looked up hopefully, bloodshot eyes desperately searching ruby eyes, only to find lone sorrow.

Raimundo wailed. "No! I won't let you! I don't want to be parted from you again! I don't want you to leave!" The brunette's voice began to shake and slightly increase in volume. The sobs were unbearable for Jack to hear. "Please… I don't want you to leave me… I don't want you to go away…"

Jack sighed, closing his eyes. If he opened them, Raimundo would see that Jack was heartbroken, too. But that would only make it worse… it was just a visit...

"I'm sorry it had to be this way…" Jack whispered, leaning in to plant a kiss on his love's forehead. "I'm sorry that I have to… leave again…"

Raimundo sobbed and tightened his grip on Jack's neck. "No… I won't let you leave me… I'll do anything…" Raimundo desperately buried his nose in Jack's neck again, sobbing like there was no tomorrow… He didn't care if he was being selfish… all he wanted was to be with his love… "I will… I really will, Jack…"

"Raimundo…" Jack murmured, frowning slightly at the distressed boy. "You can't do anything to keep me here… I'll have to go eventually… you'll have to eventually wake up…"

And it suddenly struck to Raimundo. "I don't have to wake up…"

A feeling of dread washed over Jack. _What… what did he say?_

Jack suddenly gripped Raimundo's shoulders and pulled the brunette away, staring straight into the suicidal boy's sad, yet so beautiful, green eyes…

"Listen to me, Raimundo…" Jack said firmly. "Don't… don't do this… don't do such a stupid thing, don't throw everything away… just to be with me… it's… it's not worth it… _I'm_ not worth it…"

Raimundo's eyebrows furrowed, and he stared at Jack like he didn't understand what the genius was saying. Jack pulled him closer, so they were mere centimeters apart. "You promised me, Raimundo… you promised me that you'd be the strongest Dragon out there--"

"What does it mean…" Raimundo croaked, his face contorted, looking almost like he was about to burst into tears again. "What does anything mean… if I don't have the one I love…?"

Red eyes widened in surprise. Raimundo smiled softly. "I love you, Jack."

Jack threw his arms around the boy, biting his bottom lip to keep his emotions in check. Why now? Why did it all happen now, when it was too late? Why was God so cruel to both of them?

"Raimundo…" Jack whispered. He snapped his eyes shut. The tears were starting to come. "I love you, too. But none of it will change whether I stay or not. I _will_ have to leave."

Raimundo smiled a broken, terrible smile. "This is all my fault, isn't it? If I hadn't gone and attacked Kimiko-- Chase-- in the beginning, you wouldn't have gotten hurt, and--"

"Don't say that, Raimundo." Jack whispered harshly. "It's not your fault. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I shouldn't have dragged you into this in the first place…"

The sat in silence, holding each other. Both boys waited for the feeling of despair and sorrow that made them both cry, to fade away, before they spoke again.

"Will you visit again?" Raimundo whispered, so softly that Jack had to strain his ears to hear.

"… Not… in a very long time." _That's a 'no', then,_ Raimundo thought tearfully.

Jack and Raimundo both pulled away at the same time, gazing at each other.

Raimundo held Jack's face with both hands, clutching with so much possessive passion, that it touched Jack's heart. "I love you, Jack. I always will."

"I love you, too, Raimundo. _Forever._" Jack whispered, successfully holding back his tears.

Then they kissed. A long kiss with passion emitting from all sides… A kiss that showed how much they cared… just how much they loved each other…

A kiss not to be forgotten. A kiss that showed people _just_ what love was.

And showed just how painful, love could be, as well.

Raimundo pulled away, resting his forehead against Jack's pale one. Jack began to glow slightly. His pale hands were clutching onto Raimundo, trying to keep himself on the ground, trying to keep himself from leaving his lover.

But Jack couldn't stand the force much longer. And in just a matter of time, his feet were in the air, and his hand, with a last squeeze of comfort, left Raimundo's. Jack was floating to the albino sky, reaching out for Raimundo. But Raimundo was planted in his place, unable to do anything but watch his love float away. Because he knew there was no other way.

"Wait for me!" Raimundo suddenly blurted. Jack was still close… If Raimundo just reached out his hand, he could at least touch Jack's hand one more time...

But what good would that do?

"I will!" Jack promised, his voice echoing slightly.

Raimundo watched, as his Jack was carried up to the sky by that unknown force. He watched Jack slowly start to shrink, and the light conquer over his tiny figure. He watched on, until the light was too bright to bear, and he had to close his eyes momentarily, so as to not burn his eyes.

And when he opened his eyes again, he was back at home, and the sun was just rising, emitting the same glow that had captured his love.

-------------------------

_Two years later…_

Raimundo stood in the beautiful sight, a bright smile stretching on his face. He half expected to see a boy, standing only a few feet away from him, but knew that was impossible. A draft blew by, resulting in a few flowers snapping off their stems, and blowing towards him. He caught one, a dandelion, and tucked it between his fingers before beginning to speak.

"I found a place for both of us, Jack." Raimundo said softly, his words carrying a light tone. "It took a long time to find, but I finally found it. I found the meadow that was in both of our dreams."

It was on one of their missions to find the next Shen Gong Wu, that he had spotted it. A beautiful, flat meadow that seemed to stretch on for miles and miles. Kimiko had said it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Raimundo had to agree.

"In a way, I'm actually kind-of glad that you made me live on." Raimundo continued. To others, it might have looked like he was talking to the wind, or to an imaginary friend. But to all who knew Raimundo, they knew exactly who he was talking to. "There's still so much left to do… even if it's without… you…"

Raimundo gulped. A whistle whispered in the wind.

"I still miss you so much…" Raimundo croaked, pinching the bridge of his nose, so as to not break down right there. "I still dream about you, think about you… I wait for you every day, even though I _know_ you can't… you can't come to me…

"_I still love you so much_…"

Raimundo smiled bravely, and looked up to the bright blue sky. He peered amongst the clouds, trying to find one that looked like Jack. "What I promised you… my dream, it hasn't taken any action yet, but… I promise you, Jack, it _will_ come true! Even if it's just taking baby steps right now… I'll do it for you…"

Raimundo fiddled with the rim of his shirt. "But the other part of my promise… it's come true. Kimiko, and Omi, and Clay, and Master Fung… they all don't mind that I love you, now… they just accept it… I think, maybe, it's hard for Master Fung to accept it, since a lot of the old people these days are against… you and me… but all the kids are fine with it! Kimiko smiles whenever she sees me daydreaming, 'cause she knows I'm thinking about you… Yeah, she still loves me, but it's all right… she's a smart girl… she'll find someone else…

"As for Omi, he's always making me spar with him, making me get up from my daydreaming to train." Raimundo chuckled lightly, the flowers around him dancing to his merciful laugh. "But I know he cares. He just… doesn't know how to show it. But whenever I mention you, he smiles. He likes the way I talk about you… I guess he's also sad that he never got to spend any time with you, like how I did…

"They're all really nice. To me, and to you. I guess that means I've only got one goal now, huh?"

The Dragon of the Wind plopped down on the grassy earth, twirling the flower in his hand. "You know, ever since that day that you came to visit me, I've woken up to the sunrise… and every time I see the sun peek through my window, I see you… and I remember you, and my dream--both of them. The dream that I have to accomplish, and the dream where you left me, one last time… every day starts with you…"

Raimundo lay back on the grass, gazing up at the sky. He pictured Jack sitting next to him, one knee bent, elbow resting on the bent knee. That was probably what Jack was doing right then.

"I wonder how you and Chase get along, up there." Raimundo thought aloud. He smiled dreamily, rolling to the side, and closing his eyes. "Probably not that well… huh?

"Jack, I'm sorry I killed your hero…" Raimundo whispered, observing a blade of grass as it danced with the flowers.

The young Dragon crawled up on all fours, making his way toward the rock that was behind him the whole time. Even though it was a dull, gray color, it somehow made the scene more beautiful, fit in perfectly with the flowers and the endless blue sky above. Flowers bordered the edges of the stone, decorating it with pink and yellow. Raimundo smiled brightly, kneeling in front of the stone.

"I built your grave right here, where your dream took place!" Raimundo chirped. "I thought it'd be a nice place. How 'you like it?

"You know, in a way, your dream _did_ come true… but it wasn't as heartbreaking or depressing as it was in _your_ dream… In _your_ dream, I left because I thought it wasn't right for us, good and evil, to be together… But in _my_ dream, you left because… well, because you had to…"

Raimundo chuckled lightly to himself. "But I guess, no matter how many times we leave each other, we'll still love each other, huh?"

And so Raimundo continuously chattered on, filling Jack in on everything that happened in the last two years. He entertained both himself and Jack, by just how much he was talking. (_God, I'm like a girl,_ Raimundo thought) He talked about Showdowns, Shen Gong Wu, the world without Jack and Chase, training, Kimiko, Omi, from everything to everyone. It was amazing _just_ how much a fifteen-year-old Brazilian boy could talk. After about thirty minutes of just aimless talking, Raimundo spotted Dojo in the sky, which signaled the end of his visit.

"Well, I'll try to talk to you later." Raimundo said softly, smiling gently. "I've got another Showdown waiting for me, which I will probably kick ass at. Later!"

After placing the almost-forgotten flower in front of the grave, Raimundo ran to the waiting dragon and Dragons, determined to retrieve the next Shen Gong Wu.

And on the beautiful stone, there lay a fresh, new engraving.

_Jack Spicer_

_Even if we can never be together, I will always love you._

_Wait for me, my angel._

-Fin

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes, _thank god_ this is over! I _really_ didn't think my fanfic was gonna be so… successful. Honestly, I thought no one would read it, after the second part of Jack's dream in the first chapter. (That was after I read fifty million lemons on Banana Oil) Thank you SO much, all of my reviewers and fans. You meant SO much to me! I'm sorry it couldn't have been longer. Just remember, even if the one closest to you dies, it doesn't mean you won't have a happy ending!

I am sorry to say, no more fanfics ever again, or possibly just for a very long time. This feeling of "Oh my god, I have to write more; If I don't, my reviewers will kill me!" has been killing me, and I really don't want to have to go through that again. So, I'm very sorry, but no.

Now, go on and read Purrfectly679's "I think I better leave right now", at Banana Oil! I got a _lot_ of my words from her. She is a _way_ better angst writer than I am. Actually, all the fics at Banana Oil are great. There's a link in my profile. Go! Now!

Farewell, shaman3.


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